Chapter 164

Chapter 164: Only Eight People Dare to Enter the Sect Grand Tournament?

Bai Mu Mu and Wen Xuan returned to the room.

Luo Chu asked: “Second Senior Brother, what did you talk about? You were gone so long?”

Feng He Yun looked at Wen Xuan and added: “Your face doesn’t look good.”

Wen Xuan forced a smile and said: “It’s nothing, we only talked about matters related to the Sect Grand Tournament. Maybe the wind gave me a chill. Senior Brother, you don’t need to worry.”

Bai Mu Mu said nothing and sat back in her seat.

Master Ling Xiao warned them, his tone holding a hint of rebuke: “The Sect Grand Tournament is about to begin. I expect all of you to focus on the matches.”

It seemed he was not happy with Wen Xuan’s state.

Just then, the Flying Cloud Sect’s flying ship slowly docked at its assigned spot on Fengling Terrace.

Master Ling Xiao gave a short order: “Go,” then led the people of Flying Cloud Sect down from the ship.

As Sect Master, Shen Dao Chen walked at the front. On his left and right were Young Sect Master Bai Mu Mu and Master Ling Xiao.

Behind them came Feng He Yun and the others, as well as Elders and Disciples who would compete or watch the matches.

When the Flying Cloud Sect team stepped onto Fengling Terrace, they instantly became the center of attention.

They headed to the high platform in the very center of the staging area, the throne-seat reserved for the number one sect, a symbol of unmatched strength and highest honor.

On the left and right stood the platforms for the second through fifth sects, built in tiers that stepped down by rank.

They were Heavenly Sword Sect, Beast Taming Sect, the Red Desert Jiang Clan, and Artifact Forging Sect.

All were already present and watched as Flying Cloud Sect walked past and took the top seat.

With Flying Cloud Sect seated, the top five sects were all in place.

Even just sitting there, they gave off a heavy pressure that made people hold their breath.

The Spirit Voice Transmission kept announcing other sects arriving.

The voice reported: “Spirit Herb Valley has arrived. Last ranking: 685.”

It continued: “Alchemy Sect has arrived. Last ranking: sixth.”

The smaller sects and loose cultivators were not very excited by these names. Right now, everyone was simply waiting for the Sect Grand Tournament to start.

Someone shouted: “Hurry up and begin! I can’t wait to see Master Ling Xiao make a move!”

Another voice echoed: “Faster, faster!”

The next announcement, though, caught the ear of the restless crowd.

The voice reported: “Ninghua Sect has arrived. Last ranking: none.”

People murmured: “Ninghua Sect? No ranking. Is it newly founded?”

In the past ten years, many new sects had been created, and some planned to make a splash at this Sect Grand Tournament.

Someone hissed: “Ninghua Sect sounds familiar.”

Another person snapped their fingers and said: “Oh, that’s the mysterious sect that auctioned rare treasures at Linglong Pavilion.”

A third said: “So many years with only rumors and no sign of a real sect. I thought they didn’t exist.”

A fourth snorted: “Acting so mysterious, I want to see what kind of sect they really are.”

Someone warned: “They had so many treasures at auction. Maybe they’re a hidden grand sect. Don’t look down on them.”

Another judged by sight and said: “From the size of their ship, they look ordinary.”

A shout rose: “The ship stopped. People from Ninghua Sect are getting off.”

Thanks to the name they built up through Linglong Pavilion, Ninghua Sect drew more talk than most mid-level arrivals.

Shen Sang Ruo and several others stepped onto Fengling Terrace. Onlookers whispered: “Those three in front should be the Sect Master and the Elders. None of them looks simple.”

Another voice added: “The five young cultivators behind them look good too, especially the woman in red. Is she their Young Sect Master?”

Their strong presence stood out at once, drawing even more eyes to this once-rumored Ninghua Sect.

Someone said: “This sect seems decent. If the rest are like these, they might break into the top three hundred.”

While people still waited to see more of Ninghua Sect’s members, Shen Sang Ruo and her companions went straight to their staging area.

Someone frowned and asked: “They walked so fast. Won’t they wait for the others? That’s not a great look for a sect.”

Another corrected him: “No, their ship already closed up. Looks like no one else is coming.”

A gasp followed: “No one else? You’re kidding. Adding Elders and Disciples together, they only have eight people.”

A skeptic blurted: “The team match needs fifteen. Are they sending only five?”

Someone muttered: “[Is this a joke?]”

Another worried aloud: “How can they fight a team match when the other side has triple their numbers?”

Someone scoffed: “There’s no way a sect can’t gather fifteen Disciples, right?”

Another answered: “I think they really can’t.”

Other sects had brought more people than just the competitors. Even small sects came with dozens to watch and learn, to cheer and shout support. Great sects like Flying Cloud Sect brought hundreds.

But Ninghua Sect had so few that you could count them on your fingers.

It did not look like they were hiding their numbers on purpose. The Sect Grand Tournament only came once every ten years. For small sects, chances were rare. You would try to bring as many as you could.

Someone asked in disbelief: “So their whole sect is just these eight people?”

In all past Sect Grand Tournaments, no one had seen a sect show up like this.

What they did not know was that, among these eight, one had been invited at the last minute. Ninghua Sect truly had only seven people.

Jeers started: “I thought they were special. They auctioned so many treasures like they had deep roots. Turns out they were just pretending.”

Another guessed: “Maybe their sect was failing, so they sold their treasures and dressed it up with fancy words.”

A calmer voice tried to soften it: “Don’t be too harsh. Maybe they just came to feel the tournament’s atmosphere.”

Someone said with a hint of respect: “So few people, yet they dared to enter the matches. I actually admire their courage, honestly.”

A sharp tongue cut through the noise as Dong Fang Xu sneered: “A tournament like this lets any random nobody slip in. The world really is going downhill.”

His neighbor quickly echoed him: “A sect like that can join the Grand Tournament? Facing them would lower our status.”

Dong Fang Xu’s face turned cool as he asked: “Is our Beast Taming Sect a sect without grace?”

The other man froze, unsure.

Dong Fang Xu showed a sly smile and said: “Since they’re a new sect, we should take responsibility as the third-ranked sect in the Cultivation World and take good care of them.”

The follower understood at once and said with the same smile: “We get it. We won’t let Senior Brother Dong Fang down.”

Dong Fang Xu nodded in satisfaction. A tense tournament could use a bit of fun.

People kept talking about Ninghua Sect.

Normally, the Flying Cloud Sect would not care about such a small sect.

But Luo Chu was restless by nature. Bored, he scanned around for something interesting.

Hearing the talk about Ninghua Sect, he looked that way too.